1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing system including an image input and output apparatus having a USB (Universal Serial Bus) connector to which a USB device can be attached, and an information processing apparatus connected through a network.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, a memory card and the like serving as a removable external storage device for storing image data and the like have widely been used in a widely used portable information terminal (PDA) (Personal Data Assistance), a digital camera and the like.
In addition, a multi-function peripheral (MFP) serving as an image input and output apparatus capable of forming an image based on image data stored in the external storage device has come into wide use.
Meanwhile, a USB memory has widely been used as a removable external storage device in recent years, and data security measures have recently become important. As one exemplary measure, a USB memory having not only a data area but also an application area and capable of storing date in the data area using an encryption application and the like stored in the application area has been introduced.
For example, a USB memory complying with U3® specifications proposed by SanDisk® Corporation (hereinafter also referred to as a U3® memory) is available.
In many cases, the application of the U3® memory as described above is adapted to a general-purpose operating system (OS) (for example, Windows®) generally used in a personal computer (PC), but not adapted to an embedded OS (for example, VxWorks®) incorporated in the MFP.
Therefore, even when the U3® memory is attached to the connector terminal of the USB provided in the MFP, the MFP cannot recognize the application stored in the U3® memory, and therefore, cannot control the U3® memory.
In this regard, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2006-015532 discloses a scheme by which the peripheral control software is downloaded through a network from the service site to allow recognition of the USB devices (for example, U3® memory and the like) corresponding to peripherals that cannot be recognized.
However, in order to allow the USB devices to be controlled, this scheme requires the peripheral control software to be provided in the service site depending on the OS. This poses a problem of a significant increase in cost in the case where updates are frequently performed.